Feedback: Stronger communities starts with looking out for neighbors

Mar. 14, 2014

Police tape surrounds the house on Savanna Drive on Thursday March 6, 2014 where a woman in her 40s was found dead in the back seat of her SUV in her garage in Pontiac where she may have been there as long as six years. Ryan Garza / Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press

The discovery of a Pontiac woman thought to have died at least five years ago is sad.

In 2003, I founded Australia's annual celebration of community, Neighbour Day, after an elderly woman was discovered in her home two years after she had died.

Elsie Brown had been forgotten by her neighbors, her friends and her family. Each year since then, on the final Sunday in March, Australians have held street parties, barbecues, lunches and other events to build stronger relationships with other local residents.

Through closer communities in which we look out for our neighbors, we can give them dignity and respect by ensuring that they are not forgotten and alone. I invite the people of Detroit and across the United States to join with Australia on March 30 to help build stronger communities.

Andrew Heslop

Sydney, Australia

Put people before profits on toxins

In early 2000 I was a part of a class-action directed at Marathon and Severstal steel. A primary objective of the settlement required new filtration and scrubber systems to reduce the amount of contaminants released into the air.

Litigation may be the only alternative to a business-dominated government in Lansing that seems to place profits ahead of public health.

Joseph Borrajo

Dearborn

Accountability sought for untested rape kits

Regarding the failure to test more than 10 years of rape kits: Did numerous police executives charged with the storage and prompt testing of these kits simply fail to do their jobs? Why has not one single police department executive, either sworn or civilian, been charged with a crime such as dereliction of duty? Women were victimized because these officials did not do their sworn duties.

It's time for Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan to hold all past and possible current public officials to the basic standard of doing their jobs completely, honestly and with a serious commitment to serve the public at all times. Until all these public officials are held accountable and responsible, there is no effective deterrent to this same or similar dereliction of duty occurring over and over again.